


One, two, three

by kyjr



Category: Arashi (Band), Johnny's Entertainment, KAT-TUN (Band), Kanjani8 (Band)
Genre: Adventure, Angst, Gen, M/M, Sort of ambiguous relationships, superhero au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-16
Updated: 2013-10-16
Packaged: 2017-12-29 14:14:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1006386
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyjr/pseuds/kyjr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kanjani8 are a group of superheroes, born from the explosive mistake of a scientist, unwanted and unneeded by society. They're not a very <i>good</i> bunch of superheroes - and in fact haven't done any serious superhero work in years - but when two of their own are taken by the Alliance, they need to band together once more to save them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	One, two, three

**Author's Note:**

> For [](http://greatfountain.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://greatfountain.livejournal.com/)**greatfountain** for je-otherworlds.

It starts with an explosion.

It's not _meant_ to start with an explosion, but it does. It's not meant to change people's lives, but it does. It's not meant to ruin everything, but it does.

"...Shit," Aiba curses, and goes to put out his eyebrows.

 

\---

 

"Ryo. Ryo, wake up."

Ryo awakes with a gasp, sitting bolt upright as reality washes over him in one cool wave. Maru's perched on the side of his bed, eyebrows furrowed as he watches Ryo adjust. "You okay?" he asks, once Ryo's realised where he is.

"Yeah," Ryo answers, rubbing his eyes.

"That dream again?"

It's not a dream. He wishes it were, but it's not. It's not even a nightmare, really. It's a memory, a horrible memory that haunts him whenever he closes his eyes. "Yeah," he answers, his voice hoarse as he turns to check the clock on his bedside table. It reads three thirty; too early for the others to be up. He sighs and turns his eyes onto Maru, who is just watching him carefully.

"...You okay?" he repeats, and this time Ryo doesn't answer. "Come on," Maru says, getting to his feet and pulling Ryo with him. Ryo doesn't want to argue - it's the third time this week he's woken up from his dream, and he's exhausted. He doesn't sleep well on good nights, either.

But Maru is there, stroking his arm as he boils water for tea. Ryo leans against the kitchen counter and watches the level in the kettle rise, tries to think of anything but the dream. He hates it, more than he hates the guy who made him this way.

The tea makes him feel right again. Maru's tea always helps; Ryo doesn't know why. Maru insists that he doesn't do anything different than the others do, but Ryo is persistent. "You should go back to bed," Ryo says. They're on the couch now; Maru's moving to turn the television on. "This isn't the kind of time for humans to be awake."

Maru chuckles as he settles on a channel - a rerun of a sitcom that Subaru likes - and sits back, throwing his arm over the back of the couch. "Shut up, Ryo," he says, but there's this soft tone in his voice that tells Ryo he doesn't really mean it. "None of us are very human, anyway," he adds, with a grimace. Ryo has to agree with him there.

That's when he notices Maru's wings.

"What happened?" he asks, worried, putting his mug down and casting an eye over Maru's wings. He's sitting so they're over the back of the couch, unfurled and looking rather battered. "You're hurt," he adds, and Maru just shrugs.

"Nothing, I'll be--"

"How did I not notice before--"

"Ryo, I'm fi--"

"Come here."

"No."

"Come _here_ ," Ryo repeats strongly, and Maru sighs.

"Fine," he says, resigned as he carefully shifts so his back is toward Ryo. "Seriously though, they'll heal in time, you don't have to--"

"Shut up," Ryo mutters, carefully running his palm up over the leathery membrane of Maru's left wing. It's torn in places, with blood clinging to the skin around it. "You're pretty cut up," he says quietly. "You didn't want to tell me?"

"You're tired," is all Maru says.

"You're too soft," Ryo answers, but there's a smile on his lips as he continues moving his hand up Maru's wing, supporting it with his other hand so that it doesn't move too much. Maru just hums as Ryo moves his fingers over a particularly sensitive spot. "But you couldn't have hidden it from me forever," Ryo adds. Maru doesn't say anything.

Ryo's tired but he's also stubborn, so he quickly gets to work. He starts off with the smaller cuts that have split Maru's skin, his hand gliding over the surface of it and feeling the power within him spark up and flare. It heats his hand and it kind of burns but it's not unbearable; Maru shifts a little as the skin is melded back together. He leaves the grazes and the barely-there scratches and goes for the tear in the membrane of Maru's wing that seems to be the most problematic. It's almost the same size as Ryo's palm, and he knows that it would've been difficult for Maru to get home like this.

"Where were you?" Ryo finally asks, because three in the morning isn't a usual time for Maru to be getting home. Maru grunts as the tear begins to close.

"Nowhere, really," he answers, and his wing twitches as Ryo presses a sensitive spot accidentally. Ryo doesn't believe him but he lets it go; Maru is pretty easy-going but he's tired and sore, and Ryo doesn't want to have a cranky Maru on his hands. So Ryo just nods and continues moving his hands over his wings, feeling his energy drain out of him and run into Maru. "Your tea is getting cold."

"I don't care," Ryo murmurs, sliding his hand along the underside of Maru's wing. Maru stretches it out in reflex, his body tensing as the newly repaired skin is tested out for the first time. "Is it alright?" Ryo asks, his hands still on the membrane of the wing. He doesn't like touching them, normally; they kind of make him uncomfortable. Makes him feel like Maru is almost half bat or something. He knows Maru doesn't like them all that much either, for the very same reason.

"What's wrong?" a voice pipes up, and Ryo turns. "Maru's hurt?"

It's Yasu; his hair is all over his face and his eyes are red as he yawns widely, scratching his head. Ryo nods. "But he's alright now," Ryo says, gently patting Maru on the back to tell him that he's finished. Maru's wings flex out wide again, giving a small experimental flap.

"Ah, it's good," Maru says, smiling. "Thanks--"

"You know I don't like it when you thank me," Ryo grumbles, grabbing his tea and finally taking a sip. It's not too hot and not too cold, and he sighs happily as Yasu pads his way over to the couch in his fluffy yellow slippers. Maru just grins.

"I know," is all he says, and folds his wings back down carefully. "Why're you up?" Maru asks, taking a sip of tea before Yasu pulls the cup from his hands and takes a long drink from it.

"Ryo casts out these horribly intense emotions when he has that nightmare," Yasu says, eyes glued onto the television screen. "And there was something else - now I know it was your injuries," he adds, tucking his feet up under his body.

"Sorry--" Ryo starts, but Yasu shakes his head.

"Not your fault," he says quietly, and takes another sip of tea. "Such is the curse of sensing your emotions," Yasu laughs, and passes the mug to Maru again. "I'm fine, Ryo. Stop worrying," he adds, playfully hitting Ryo's knee.

Ryo can't _help_ but worry.

 

\---

 

All of the guys at the _Mugendai_ had been affected by the Shockwave. Broken and alone, abandoned by their families, they had found each other, seeking comfort and needing answers. They were cast aside by the Superhero Alliance, told that they were nothing but man-made freaks. So they had decided to live together in a run-down old warehouse away from the main city.

It's not much, but it's home, even with it's rickety stairway and broken windows. They take care of each other and support one another; Maru isn't the only one unable to hold down an average job. But they make it work, somehow. Even with concrete floors and their bedsheets as curtains, they make it work; they make it home. It started when Hina found a hideous old rug that none of them liked and just threw it into the middle of the room - that's when they realised that this'll probably be forever. The warehouse, them, the rug.

They had tried going independent and do the whole superhero thing, but quickly realised there was no need for them. They hadn't had training like the professionals, and they didn't know how to deal with more delicate situations. They could punch and hit and attack, sure, but they didn't know how to navigate emotions and deal with the 'crazies', as Yoko had so gently put it.

No-one had needed them. No-one had _wanted_ them.

The world revolved around superheroes but no-one had time for these seven men.

 

\---

 

"I'm home," Ohkura sighs, falling onto the couch and stretching his arms over his head. "Ah, I'm tired..."

"Welcome home," Hina answers from the kitchen. "How was-- Yoko! _Yokoyama Yuu get your head out of the cupboard, dinner is almost ready_ \-- How was work?"

"But I'm hungry _now_ ," Yoko whines, padding out of the kitchen with cutlery in his hands. Hina ignores him.

"Work was as horrible as always," Ohkura says, smiling when Ryo walks in, followed quickly by Subaru. Ryo flicks Ohkura's elbow good-naturedly as he collapses to the couch next to him, quickly stealing the remote. "Hey--"

"I've fixed five toilets today," is all Ryo says, and Ohkura backs off. " _Five toilets_. I deserve TV time!"

"You're putting your healing talents to waste as a handyman," Hina says, but Ryo just rolls his eyes.

"Maru's gonna be two hours late; he says not to wait for him," Ohkura says suddenly, and they hear a crash in the kitchen. "Don't shoot the messenger!" he hastily adds, just before Hina appears with his ladle in-hand and wielding it violently.

"I've been slaving away for hours and he--"

"Where's he been going, anyway?" Ryo pipes up - a brave move, seeing as though Hina has that look in his eyes. The "I could punch through a wall right now _and I just might_ " look.

"No idea, he's blocked off that part of his mind," Ohkura says, and Hina turns that glare back onto him. Ohkura shrinks back.

"I'll go look for him," Yoko sighs, already gathering his things; Hina throws his hands into the air.

"Great! Now _two_ of you won't be here--"

"Calm down, it won't take long. Can you wait for us?" Yoko asks, getting that pleading look on his face. Hina huffs but lowers his ladle, and nods.

"Yeah, sure," he says, but he's disappointed and everyone in the room knows it. Yoko, not knowing how to deal with the whole people-feeling-things thing, shifts uncomfortably.

"I'm sorry--"

"It's fine, just go."

Ryo and Ohkura give each other side-long glances, choosing to stay out of this one; Hina's bad when he's angry but even worse when he's disappointed. Yoko shoulders his bag and gives Hina one last look, which is ignored, then turns to Ryo and Ohkura.

"Thanks, guys," he says sarcastically, before he runs his hand through his hair and leaves. The door slams behind him; Hina jumps and glares at the shadow that chases after Yoko before going back into the kitchen.

 _You go talk to him_. Ohkura's voice is strong in Ryo's mind, making him jump in surprise. He hears Ohkura chuckle deeply beside him. Ryo scrunches his face up; he hates it when Ohkura does that. But Ryo grumbles and goes to talk to Hina, who is standing near the stove, staring into the big pot of spaghetti sauce he had made.

"Hina?" Ryo tries, and Hina just grunts. Yasu would be better at this, but Yasu's in his room being 'creative' again. This probably means he's sticking bits of old driftwood onto milk crates and calling it expressive art; Ryo always thinks it looks like bits of old driftwood stuck onto milk crates. Apparently that's not right. But the bastard sells these bits of old driftwood and milk crates for an exhorbitant amount of money, so Ryo guesses he can't complain.

"What?" Hina snaps, dragging a hand over his forehead. "Nothing's wrong, I'm fine. Shut _up_ , Ohkura, no-one cares," he adds louder, so Ohkura can hear from the lounge room. "Get outta my head."

Ryo sighs and hoists himself up onto the kitchen counter, swinging his legs whilst Hina continues to cook. It doesn't take long until--

"Just wanted everyone to eat together," Hina says, stirring his sauce. _Like a family_. The unspoken words hang in the air but Ryo knows they're there, knows that's the reason why Hina always makes sure they eat together at the dining table. Like the families in the movies.

"I know," Ryo says, and hops down to clap Hina on the back. "But stop being depressing; you're Murakami Shingo, right? You're not meant to be depressing. It's kinda gross." Hina laughs a little, and Ryo lets go of the breath he didn't know he'd been holding. "Anyway, we don't have to eat now. Throw Ohkura a sandwich or something to tide him over till dinner."

"Yes, please!"

"Shut up!" Hina barks at Ohkura, and winks at Ryo. "I'm all good; you go do something useful."

"Like what?" Ryo asks, his head already in the fridge. He's munching on a pickle when Hina answers.

"Go bug Subaru to give me back my mp3 player," he says, and pulls the pot off the stove. "I haven't seen it in three months."

Ryo's about to go do that - he should be showering but he can't be bothered, and his work overalls are kind of comfortable - when there's a crash and Maru falls through the ceiling.

It's a rather gruesome sight - moonlight shines through the hole in the roof, cutting through the dust particles spinning uncontrollably through the air. Maru's wings are bent at odd angles as he struggles up through the remnants of the roof lying in big chunks of metal on the ground and he stumbles, the added weight of his wings overbalancing him. Ryo belatedly rushes to help him up just as he's about to tip over, quickly grabbing onto his arms and steadying him. Maru's eyes are wild when he looks up at the touch of Ryo's hands on him, and Ryo has to take a step back, not used to seeing Maru like this. It's like he's not even there.

"What the fuck happened?" Ohkura asks, rushing into the hallway wide-eyed. Subaru pops his head out of his room and swears, setting down his guitar before coming to help Ryo.

"You're the psychic, shouldn't you know?" Ryo huffs. Maru's body is practically dead weight on him as he tries to pick his way out of the rubble without getting cut by the steel from the roof. Maru's wings drag along the floor, making it even more difficult to get him out safely. Ohkura doesn't answer.

"What's going on?" Hina roars, bursting into the hallway and surveying the situation, once again with his ladle raised. "Wh-- Maru?"

"Yeah," Subaru groans, Maru's wing twitching violently and catching the side of his face as he and Ryo lower Maru down to the ground again. Maru sags against the wall, panting, his face screwed up in pain. He's covered in bruises and scratches; there's blood running down from his hairline. Ryo's there beside him, running careful hands over Maru's body, trying to assess how injured he really is. He's got a broken arm and something in his foot has fractured; there might be internal bleeding but Ryo can't really figure out where it starts.

"This'd be a lot easier if Yoko were here. I could use his ability right now," Ryo murmurs, and that's when Maru jolts, as if he's just woken up.

"Yoko," he rasps out, looking straight into Ryo's eyes; Ryo can't look away even if he wants to, and oh how he wants to.

"Kura--"

"On it," Ohkura says, and his left hand starts shaking as it always does when he's diving into the minds of others. Maru scrunches his face up as Ohkura's presence makes itself known and he doesn't have the power to fight it.

Hina stares at Ohkura's hand as he works, unsure of what to do and feeling increasingly uneasy as the time drags on. "Go get Yasu," Ryo says, his hands now flitting over Maru's head to try to find where that blood is coming from. Hina makes a noise but still goes; they don't see neither he nor Yasu until everything is all settled and fine again. Yasu doesn't like seeing them hurt.

Maru's breathing is staggered and he seems to be finding it hard to keep his head up, so Ryo moves his hands to Maru's cheeks and holds it up for him. "Maru," he whispers. "Stay here. Stay with us. It's gonna be fine." Maru just groans faintly.

"He's-- Yoko?" Ohkura finally says, looking confused. "Yoko's been taken by someone?"

Ryo's head snaps up at that; even Subaru looks intrigued. "Huh?"

"He drew this symbol-- Like an arrow through a circle?" Ohkura says, his eyebrows furrowed as he tries to pry more and more information from the exhausted man. Maru's eyelashes flutter against Ryo's fingertips and Ryo rushes to wake him, still unsure as to whether he's concussed or not. Better safe than sorry. "It seems to be a golden colour or something. There're words underneath but I can't make them out--"

"D'you think it's the Alliance?" Subaru pipes up, and the others freeze. They know to listen if Subaru deems it important enough to talk. "The arrow through the circle sounds like their emblem; was there any kind of red colour mixed in?"

"There could've been," Ohkura says, leaning against the wall and massaging his hand. "It was very fuzzy. He only caught a brief glimpse, I think."

Ryo says nothing, letting the information sink in. Maru stirs under his hands and he's back, running his hands down Maru's arms to let him know he's still there. "Baru, help me get him into his room."

Maru's room is very Maru-like. It's full of knick-knacks from places he's been and people he's met, all cluttered and yet cozy; Maru collects things, all kinds of things - from old coins to bottle caps to feathers to tiny little stuffed hedgehogs. The room glitters when Ryo turns Maru's bedside lamp on, the light catching onto the crystals hanging from the roof and making them dance with a sort of comfortable glow. Ryo lowers Maru down onto his bed gently, making sure to avoid hitting his head on the many dreamcatchers above.

When Maru is settled, Ryo moves to sit next to him, taking in everything in the room. "There's always something new to look at," Ryo laughs. "My room is so boring compared to yours." It's another fifteen minutes before Ryo sighs and turns to Maru, whose eyes are hooded. "Alright, let's get you patched up," he says, and Maru just nods.

 

\---

 

Ohkura tries finding out where they've taken Yoko, but gets halfway through Tokyo before the trail disappears. He comes home looking bedraggled and wet; Hina gets angry at him for forgetting an umbrella and hits him around the head before sending him to bed. With only a few symbols as hints as to where Yoko is, they don't have much to go off. But they're all trying as much as they can. Subaru and Yasu take the night watch while Hina and Ohkura normally take the day time; Ryo stays in with Maru.

Ryo sleeps in the same room as Maru, on a futon next to his small bed. He wakes to the soft chimes hanging outside Maru's window and it's quiet lovely, he thinks. Sometimes he wakes to the feel of arms around his waist and a body pressed close; Maru sometimes draws his wings up over them like a dome, and the morning sunlight that shines through the membrane of Maru's wings tints everything a sweet orange.

"I want pancakes," Maru says one morning, when the others are out searching. Ryo glances to the schedule on the fridge; Ohkura's meant to be home from his part-time job soon, and Ryo's really, _really_ bad at making pancakes. "Ryo, I want pancakes," he repeats, flapping his wings to grab Ryo's attention. He's got this cheeky smile on his face because he knows how much Ryo hates cooking in the morning, his eyes twinkling with merriment.

"No," Ryo says. "Don't you remember last time I tried?"

Maru pretends to think. "The time you burnt Hina's apron?"

"No, that was the time with the crumbed chicken--"

"Oh-- You mean the time you got the batter stuck on everyth--"

"Yes, yes, that one," Ryo grunts, moving around the kitchen anyway, finding the ingredients he needs. "Hina completely flipped out, h--"

 _Get out. Now_ , comes Ohkura's voice in his head, and Ryo barely has time to register the words before Maru's leaping over the kitchen counter, wings fully spread, knocking Ryo to the ground and punching the breath right out of him. There's the sound of glass breaking and Ryo thinks it might be a window but Maru's surrounding him and there's shouting and he doesn't know what to do. Ohkura is there, appearing in the air with a faint whoosh, already crouched and prepared to fight. Ryo can't see much because of Maru's wings, but there are voices and Ohkura is yelling and then Maru is, too; Ryo tries to get to his feet but Maru is pressing him into the floor quite painfully with his entire body.

"Stay there," Maru says through gritted teeth; Ryo can feel this constant tug, like someone's grabbing at them. "Just work with me here, Ryo," he adds, flashing Ryo a small smile, and even though Maru's eyes shine with worry, Ryo nods.

Ryo doesn't know who the hell is fighting Ohkura and it's driving him crazy; he can hear grunts and Ohkura yelping in pain every so often, and he wants to help. Ohkura isn't a fighter; he doesn't have the right skills to be a fighter. Ohkura is a silent attacker, one who delves into people's minds from the sidelines while Hina and Yoko pin their enemies down with their own powers.

So that's why when Ohkura is thrown to the ground next to them, his mouth bleeding and the beginning of a new bruise on his cheek, Ryo isn't too surprised. Maru says something and Ohkura shakes his head before getting shakily to his feet again; Ryo stops himself from yelling obscenities at him. He's going to get himself _killed_.

"Let me up," Ryo hisses. Maru shakes his head.

"You're not a fighter either, Ryo," Maru says, his voice kind of soft even as he tells Ryo off. "I can't let you go, too."

Ryo tries to get out of Maru's grip but there's still that tug he can feel, getting stronger; it's not right. Something isn't _right_.

Ohkura is thrown into the kitchen stove and Ryo thinks he hears the crack of Ohkura's ribs before he sinks to the floor, winded and holding his chest in pain. Ryo yelps his name and tries to move toward him because who knows what the other guys will do - Ryo can't even _see_ them - but his focus is drawn away as Maru is dragged off him.

"Don't you fucking dare," Ryo growls low in his throat, grabbing for Maru's arms, clothes, wings, _something_ to keep him here. Maru fans his wings out but otherwise makes no attempt to stop whoever is taking him; Ryo scrambles to his feet once Maru is dragged off them and reaches for his arms. "Not now. Don't you fucking _dare_ , Ryuhei."

"I'll say hi to Yoko for you," Maru says with a grin, and then he's gone. Just like that. Ryo sits, dumbfounded, on the kitchen floor as the silence envelops him, staring at the space Maru had been. It's a while before he moves again, and that's only because Ohkura groans behind him.

Fucking _shit_.

 

\---

 

Yasu's the first one to come home, the careful crunch of his sneakers against the broken glass of the window signalling his arrival. "Ryo?" he calls, just in case. "Maru?"

Ryo's in Ohkura's room this time, which is much more boring than Maru's room. It's all straight lines and sensible, just like Ohkura, with green walls and cream accents. There are books, hundreds of them; Ryo thinks half are just Ohkura's journals.

"I have to write down all the things I hear," he remembers Ohkura saying. "Else I might go crazy." Ryo also remembers saying that Ohkura was already crazy, and chuckles at himself. The other is already scribbling in a journal, his pen flying across the page as he tries to keep up with his own mind; Ryo knows he's documenting the fight, and leaves him to it.

The others are sitting in the lounge room, the mood tense. "Hey," Ryo says, and they jump and turn as one. "Who died?" he laughs, before-- Yeah, this is one of those times he should _think_ before talking. Yasu's gone white; it's probably better than Hina's green-tinge, though. "Sorry--"

Subaru rolls his eyes as Ryo buries his face in his hands and sinks into the couch. "Idiot."

"He's not _dead_ ," Ryo quickly backtracks. "He's not. They're not."

They know they should talk about it more, but they wait for Ohkura. Hina cleans up the kitchen with Yasu's help; Subaru sweeps up the broken glass. They refuse to let Ryo help, and sit him in front of the television to watch re-runs of dramas they've already seen. Ryo knows he should help but he finds absolutely no motivation to. He just can't be bothered. They've got it covered.

But as he sits and watches this drama, his mind wanders. It keeps coming to the same place, the same question - Why Maru? They could've grabbed Ohkura; it would've been easier. He was there too. He would've been much easier to grab than Maru, with his bulky wings. Why _Maru_?

They're having a solemn dinner with just the five of them when Ohkura pipes up. "I remember a lot," he says, and everyone pauses. Except Ryo. "I wrote it all down-- I know their faces. I've seen them before," he adds, expression confused.

"They work for the Alliance?" Subaru guesses, and Ohkura cocks his head.

"Sort of," he answers. "They-- Well, they're superheroes." _That_ gets Ryo's attention.

"What?" he asks, eyebrows furrowed.

"They're those-- Those ones on the television and those ones you see on the news all the time," Ohkura says, looking thoughtful. "Sakurai and Matsumoto. Heard of them?"

"The one with the teeth and the one with the hair?" Ryo tries to remember from all the toothpaste commercials. Ohkura gives him a look, but nods.

"They're part of the Alliance, but they're in deeper than just those commercials and TV spots," Subaru says. Ryo doesn't know why Subaru knows so much about the Alliance, but then again, Subaru is kind of withdrawn; maybe he investigates the Alliance in his spare time. Subaru is boring, Ryo thinks. Subaru needs a hobby.

"Like what?"

"I've done some research," Subaru starts, and Ryo nods to himself. He knew he was right. "They're linked to Ninomiya."

"The president?" Hina pipes up. "I remember him from when we tried to join," he adds. Subaru nods, taking a sip from his orange juice.

"There's another one too, but he stays out of the spotlight," Subaru continues, staring at the opposite wall. "Don't know too much about him."

"Get onto that straight away," Hina orders as Yasu stands up to clear their plates. "And I want to know everything you know, Subaru."

 

\---

 

Ryo sleeps in Maru's room that night. It's comforting, watching everything in the room. There are dials and clocks and funny little golden contraptions that whizz and whir and spin lightly, and it's all so _Maru_ that it feels like he's still there. It's really quite pathetic, and Ryo knows it, but yet he continues to lie there on Maru's bed, watching the crystals above glow in the moonlight.

Ryo's asleep when the small poodle nudges the door open and makes it's way to the bed; it falls asleep at Ryo's side, sighing and resting its head on it's paws. It's gone by morning.

 

\---

 

Even with Ohkura's help, Subaru can't find anything on the other member of the inner circle of the Alliance. There is nothing about him anywhere; all he can find is bits and pieces of broken stories, but no-one seems to know anything.

"Maybe you're asking the wrong people," Yasu suggests, shrugging. "Too bad you don't know anyone in the Alliance to help."

"Shota, you're a _genius_ ," Ohkura cries, and runs for his journals. Yasu beams, even though he has no idea what he's done.

"Yay," Yasu laughs, and steals Ryo's coffee.

Ryo goes for a drink. He's been dying to have one ever since Maru left but since it's been too hectic, he's stayed home. But they don't need him right now - they're all poring over Ohkura's journals, so he grabs one and heads to Koki's.

Koki's bar is a few streets away, tucked into a quiet corner of Tokyo. It's a little run-down but holds a lot of personality, with its red curtains and fairy lights dotting the entrance. The inside is covered in old rock posters from the 80's; Koki's kind of a rock and roll guy. Ryo likes that Koki is one of them, that he's made a normal life for himself without feeling the pressure to become yet another superhero. Koki had grown up within the Alliance but had left when he was fifteen, choosing instead to make something more of himself. Koki's famous for his tricks with drinks - since his power is manipulating liquids, he performs dramatic tricks with customers' orders, coaxing them out of their respective bottles and twirling them overhead, making different drinks mix together mid-air before gently pouring themselves into glasses.

Ryo slides into one of the seats at the bar and sighs before pulling Ohkura's journal out. "Hey," a voice says, and Ryo looks up into Kame's eyes. "Long time no see!" Kamenashi is Koki's business partner - "Place would be dead if it weren't for him," Koki often told Ryo; Kame would roll his eyes and get back to his paperwork. Koki is too rock and roll for paperwork.

"How've you been?" Ryo asks, grateful for the beer Kame passes him. It slides down his throat in the best way, and he sighs happily, closing his eyes a little. This was a good idea.

"Not too bad," Kame answers, just as Koki rounds the corner. "Koki, it's Ryo," he calls, and Koki turns his dark eyes onto Ryo's miserable form.

"Ryo!" he shouts happily - Koki's always been loud, ever since Ryo had started coming here. "You didn't bring your boys today?" he asks, scanning the area around Ryo. Ryo can feel Kame's curious gaze on Ohkura's journal, and he carefully moves his arm to cover the words. Who knows what Ohkura's written there.

"Not today," Ryo laughs, taking another sip of his beer. Koki throws his teatowel over his shoulder and sits himself down next to Ryo.

"Haven't seen anyone from your neck of the woods in a while," Koki says, an uncharacteristic serious expression on his face as he takes the drinks Kame hands him. "Tell them I said hi," he adds, going to deliver the drinks to his customers.

"Will do," Ryo laughs.

Kame sighs. "You'd think _I_ was the bartender," he comments, but Ryo can see the smirk on his face. "I'll leave you to your book," he adds, winking and disappearing around the corner. Ryo growls a little but takes a long swig of his beer and gets to work.

He doesn't exactly know what he's looking for, but Ohkura told them that they'd know when they found it. Ryo doesn't think that Ohkura knows exactly what he's talking about either, but he'll trust Ohkura. Always does.

He's halfway through the journal - which is actually quite interesting; who would have thought that Ohkura could hear _so_ many thoughts? - when Koki sighs and pins him with a stare.

"...What?"

"No pets!" Koki says exasperatedly. "I'm not allowed anymore. Something about health code violations or someshit - all I know is that Kame got really, really pissed when that Shibutani brought it in last time."

Ryo stares right back. "Koki, I have _no idea_ what you're talking about," is all he says. Koki gives him a look and points over the counter.

There's a little brown poodle sitting by Ryo's feet, its tail wagging and tongue lolling out of its mouth happily. It's staring up at Ryo with light brown eyes, cocking it's head to the side. "Oh," Ryo says, looking down at it. "That's not our pet."

"Whatever it is, it needs to go," Koki says. "I'm sorry, but--"

"No, no," Ryo laughs, waving a hand. "It's Yasu," he explains; Koki sighs and throws his hands in the air.

"You people are impossible!" he cries, and leaves grumbling under his breath. Ryo knows that he'll be back.

"What's up?" Ryo asks, taking a drink from his second beer. He's going slow today. The dog starts changing; Ryo has to look away. It freaks him out a little when Yasu changes into other forms.

"Not much," he sighs, sweeping his hair out of his face and shuddering. "I can never get used to changing back," he adds, laughing, and swipes Ryo's drink.

"Oh for fuck's sake--- You have _got_ to stop doing that," Ryo snaps, and steals it back.

"Done reading yet?" Yasu asks once he gets his own drink. "They're still going," he adds, at Ryo's questioning glance. Ryo shakes his head.

"Don't know what to look out for."

"Have you heard of an Aiba Masaki?" Yasu asks suddenly, leaning forward in his seat. The name makes Ryo jump and makes his heart race.

"Sort of," he grunts, downing the rest of his beer in one gulp. "Koki, get me another."

"I came across his name a lot in the one journal I was reading," Yasu continues, ignoring the way Ryo clams up and balls his hands into fists. "I didn't want to ask the others; they were too engrossed in their own thing-- Ryo?" he asks cautiously. "Are you alright?"

"I know him," is all Ryo says, before Koki interrupts.

"Aiba?" he asks, and Yasu turns to him, nodding. Koki's playing with some water from the tap, forming it into a ball and letting it run over his fingers.

"I've heard the name, but I'm having trouble placing him," Yasu says.

"That Maruyama was talking about him a lot," Koki says thoughtfully, rubbing his chin with one hand; Ryo suddenly becomes _very_ fascinated with the grain of the wooden table as he tries to look like he's not listening. "When he'd get real drunk. Met the guy once," he adds, and Ryo drops any pretences and stares at Koki with wide eyes. "Nice guy. Kind eyes, y'know?" Koki lets the water fall back down the sink.

So _that's_ where Maru'd been sneaking off to. Meeting with Aiba.

Yasu listens as Koki continues on talking, hands moving in wild gestures as he speaks. Ryo tunes out; he's heard that name too many times in the last ten minutes. It grates on his nerves. Ryo wants to go punch something - namely Maru, but he can't do that, so he might just round on Subaru later.

Everything was going fine, and as normal as it could be, and then that bastard reappears and everything turns to shit again. Every single time that man appears in their lives, no good comes of it.

Aiba's name only appears once in the journal Ryo is now just skimming through. His vision is going a little fuzzy and he can't concentrate on the neatly-written words in front of him, so he takes to pulling at Yasu's brightly-coloured scarf and wondering if his shoelaces are actually necessary. He's in the middle of pulling his shoelaces off his sneakers when Yasu catches his elbow and cocks an eyebrow.

"I think you've had enough to drink tonight," he says softly, but Ryo shakes his head.

"I'm good."

"You're pulling off your shoelaces."

"They're being weird," Ryo answers, glaring at them like they've done something wrong. Kame sighs from behind the bar and rolls his eyes. "You're not allowed to sigh at me," Ryo says to Kame. "You have perfect hair," he adds, and Kame gives him a look, but doesn't say anything.

Yasu lets Ryo crash on his bed that night. Yasu's bed is one of those beds that you just sink into and it's pretty much the most comfortable thing _ever_ , and he's asleep before he can properly take in Yasu's bedroom. (There's a lot of driftwood piled up in the corner.)

"Fucking shit," Ryo swears the next morning, holding onto his head. "Oh, holy fucking _shit_." Yasu gives him a look and hands him some aspirin.

"Stop swearing, it's not good for your health," he quips, and strokes Ryo's hair. Ryo's about to bark that he's not a dog and he shouldn't be petted but it feels really, _really_ good, so he lets him. He may also lean into the touch slightly, but only just a fraction.

"I've been talking with Hina and the others," Yasu says, fingers still stroking through Ryo's hair. Ryo hums to show he's listening. "They say we'll have to go find this Aiba to question him. Subaru says he might know what happened to Maru and Yoko."

"I'm not going," Ryo says stubbornly, and Yasu's fingers pause. He holds back a whine. "I don't like the guy, okay? I don't want to see him. And if it's his fault the other two have been kidnapped--"

Yasu sighs and moves closer, lying on the bed with Ryo and staring up at his ceiling - plain white, nothing like Maru's - as he starts stroking Ryo's head again. Ryo's happy with this. "Subaru told me who he is. I don't know how I didn't know before--"

"You're always off in your little fantasy world, that's why--"

"--But I still think you should come with us."

"You're going?"

Yasu nods. "I think so. From what Ohkura has written in those books, he seems sweet."

"He made us," Ryo deadpans, and Yasu's fingers disappear altogether. "He made us and left us for dead; we were fucking _six years old_ and no-one wanted us. Does that sound like someone sweet to you?"

Yasu clicks his tongue. "Don't judge people on what happened in the past, Ryo," he says, and sits up enough to look him in the eye. "You know better than that." Ryo grunts.

"Still not coming."

Turns out that Ryo doesn't have to go anywhere, because apparently Ohkura has invited Aiba over.

Aiba announces his arrival with an explosion that shakes their little warehouse and knocks Yasu down (this isn't difficult, though; Yasu has a wonky sense of balance). Ohkura beams and rushes outside as Ryo tries to help Yasu back to his feet; Hina hollers from the shower where no-one has bothered to tell him what's happening.

The first thing Ryo sees of Aiba is the small plane he's crashed into the parking lot outside the Mugendai. It's rusty and the green paint is peeling off its makeshift wings; Ryo can tell it's been put together from different planes. There's white smoke coming out from behind the propeller and something's making a whirring sound but the man that emerges from the cockpit seems happy enough.

Ohkura helps him down and he dusts himself off, shifting his thick flight goggles to rest on the top of his head so he can beam happily at the others all gathered around.

"Hi," he says, his voice raspy. "I'm Aiba."

Ryo hates him from the get-go. It looks like Hina's not exactly thrilled about him either - Hina's barely dressed and his hair is still dripping wet - but Yasu and Ohkura take to him straight away. Ryo doesn't know what Subaru is thinking.

 _Play nice_ , Ohkura says in Ryo's head. Ryo jumps and almost covers his ears with his hands before realising that that won't help at all. _And stop with the chameleon act!_

"Can't," Ryo whispers to Ohkura, making _him_ jump, "Don't want him to see me. So I'll just stay like this."

Being able to turn invisible is fun, sometimes. Especially when he can make the psychic jump in surprise. _That's_ fun.

It's incredibly childish but Ryo doesn't care, so he stands by and leans against the wall as the others all engage this man in conversation. All he wants to do is get out of there, maybe go to Koki's - but Yasu's pinning him with this half-glare and it makes him stay. He doesn't know how Yasu always finds him, even when he's like this. He says it's got something to do with being able to sense emotions, but Ryo thinks he's just really, really good. Either that, or Ryo's powers are getting rusty. He barely ever uses his chameleon one anymore.

"So I added this, then that, then something else - I think it was red, I can't remember - then _boom_!" Aiba's saying, flailing his arms in the air as he demonstrates the extent of said 'boom'. Hina's giving him the look he gives Yoko when he's being ridiculous, and Ryo chuckles. He's glad that he's not the only one who doesn't like the guy.

"So, as we were saying--" Ohkura tries, and Aiba nods emphatically, his goggles almost flying off his head.

"Oh, yes, right - your friends!" he says, that ever-present smile still on his face as he pauses. "How are they?"

"They're _gone_ ," Hina says, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I thought Ohkura told you that."

"Oh! Oh, yes, he did," Aiba says sheepishly. "How are they, despite of that?"

"You already-- Nevermind." Hina grits his teeth; Ryo doesn't know how he's not punching something right now. He's never seen Hina this shade of red before.

"It's really marvellous how this contraption works," Aiba says in awe, poking and prodding at Subaru's arm. Subaru looks very confused. "I've never seen robotics so lifelike before!"

"I'm not a robot!"

"Aiba!" Hina yells, and slams his hands on the table; everyone goes quiet. "I'll keep this simple - Maruyama Ryuhei has been visiting you. True or false?" Aiba nods his head once, looking rather shocked. "Where and why?"

"Sometimes at my place; sometimes at bars. We ate out together a few times," he answers. "He's fun."

"Do you know anything about Yokoyama Yuu?"

"No," Aiba says clearly. "Wait-- _Wait_ ," he quickly adds, flapping his hands at his own face as if that could help get his ideas into words faster, "Is he the one with the shadows?" Hina nods quickly, leaning forward as Aiba seems to remember. "Yeah; I was there when they took him. Maru and I were talking by the wharf when these shadows sort of reached for us, and then this guy was telling him off and I didn't know what to do. But before I could say anything, there were Alliance guys appearing out of nowhere and attacking," Aiba says slowly, his eyebrows knitting together. "Maru pushed me into the shadows, and they kinda wrapped around me. I couldn't see anything after that. I just remember the shadows disappearing and Maru all beat up," he ends, shrugging his shoulders and peering into his cup. "My word, these are lovely tea leaves."

The others are silent; Ryo has to sit on the end of the couch to process what's just been said. Maru - and Yoko, it seems; those were Yoko's shadows around Aiba, that's for sure - were protecting Aiba. But _why_ did the Alliance want him so badly?

When Ohkura, reading Ryo's mind - _invasion of privacy_ \- poses the question to Aiba, he just shrugs.

"Maybe they're in love with me," he says seriously, and finishes his tea.

After many hours of Aiba getting distracted and Hina trying desperately not to gouge his own eyes out, Ohkura cracks. It's been forever since they've seen him use hypnosis on anyone, and frankly it creeps Ryo out. A lot of things creep Ryo out. He's not as brave as he poses.

"What connection do you have with the Alliance?" Ohkura asks into Aiba's eyes. His head lolls back a little and he's slack-jawed, but he still manages to form sentences.

"None," he says, and Ryo can almost feel everyone's hopes sink. "But they want you."

"Me?" Ohkura asks, and Aiba shakes his head.

" _You_ ," he repeats, and Ryo gets it.

"Why do they want us?" Ryo asks sharply, dropping the chameleon trick and marching up to him. "What's going on?"

But that's all they can get out of Aiba; Ohkura says that that's all he knows. They were so close to finding a lead, and then... nothing.

"It's not nothing," Subaru says. "It's more than we had before."

Aiba leaves in the small plane he'd crashed - Ryo doesn't know how it's flying, or even how Aiba can stand the smoke that's still billowing out from the inside of it. He waves a hand out of the plane window as he takes off, the plane immediately making a horrible choking sound and dipping low in the sky, briefly catching the tip of the antenna on the building next to theirs before carrying on.

Hina sighs and runs a hand through his hair. "Who wants a beer?"

 

\---

 

"I think it's time we dust off our suits," Hina says as they sit around the table later that night. They're all nursing drinks and Ryo's is already looking like he needs a top-up. Subaru looks up sharply just as Yasu takes a deep breath next to Ryo; Ryo just takes a long drag from the cigarette perched between his fingers.

"I second that," Ohkura adds, his head in his hands as he thinks. "We need to get Yoko and Maru back. And there's only one way to do that."

"We reunite?" Subaru asks, and Ohkura nods.

"Kanjani8 will fight once more."

"Fuck," is all Ryo says, and stubs the cigarette out on the table.

 

\---

 

It's been forever since Ryo's worn his suit. It smells musty and gross, but it hasn't faded one bit. It's a funny yellow colour - Yoko had picked them out; he still doesn't know why he's the one in yellow, but whatever. Could be worse. He could be pink.

It fits him just as it did all those years ago, and he feels these memories come flashing back. Of standing next to Maru in his orange suit, his wings outstretched; of rushing head-first into fights without having any clue as to what he was doing. Of being glared at by 'real' superheroes as they came to the rescue, pushed aside and made fun of. Not this time; this time, they're fighting for their own kind. This time, they're fighting for their family.

It's weird seeing just the four of them waiting for him. But, well.

"We'll get them back," Yasu whispers as they're preparing to leave. "We have to."

Ryo nods.

 

\---

 

The Superhero Alliance is the only superhero school in Japan. It's huge, spanning across thousands of acres, with buildings upon buildings dotted around the place - it was huge when they were six years old, and it's still huge now. There's a thick wrought-iron fence around the whole property, the gates firmly closed at this time of night.

"That's the symbol I saw in Maru's mind," Ohkura murmurs, to no-one in particular. He's gesturing to the coat of arms on the front of the gate. Subaru nods.

Subaru is the one who acts first. He makes sure the others are a particular distance away from him before taking a slow, deep breath, and then with a slight flicker, the lamps placed around the campus shrink in on themselves and disappear completely. "Ryo," he whispers, but Ryo knows his place and quickly blends into his surroundings, ducking out from behind the wall they were hiding behind to get to the gates. There's a security pad next to what Ryo assumes is a fancy doorbell, and he gets to work.

 _Five,_ Ohkura instructs, and for once he's being helpful. _Three. Six. One._ Ryo doesn't know who he's getting the information from but he inputs the numbers into the pad and steps back to watch the gates creak open slowly. He fist pumps into the air but forgets that the others can't see him.

Ryo goes in alone. His heart is pounding against his ribcage as he pads down the marble-floored halls, feeling completely out of his depth. Everything is ridiculously quiet, and he can hear his own footfalls as he walks. The control room, he repeats in his mind. That's what he's looking for. Control room. And hopefully no-one finds him before he gets there.

There's a security guard sipping coffee in the room when Ryo finds it. He slips in alongside him and quietly gets to work shutting the security cameras down, using one of the many computers. Being a handyman comes in-- well, handy sometimes; he's had to fix his fair share of computers through his life, so he knows the ins and outs of them. Ohkura's feeding him bits and pieces of information that help him figure out where the codes are - once he finds them, it's a piece of cake, and he watches with a smirk as one by one the screens above the computer go dark.

The guard doesn't notice anything. He's losing his game of solitaire, though.

Ryo rushes back out to meet the others, who're waiting at the entrance, becoming visible as he runs. "Now what?" Hina asks, crossing his arms once Ryo's rejoined them. They all know he feels rather useless in these situations, because they all have numerous powers but Hina has just the one. And it's none too good for stealth work.

"Give me a moment," Ohkura says, and holds his fingers to his temples. Ryo always thinks that's all for show. Ohkura just likes being dramatic. "Follow me."

So they do.

(Ryo briefly wonders why no-one has come out to meet them - it's a place crawling with superheroes, there's bound to be one or two with powers like Ohkura who can see them coming, right? It's all very strange, he thinks.)

Ohkura leads them to a small nondescript building. Hina takes one look at it and curls his lip. "They're in here?" he sneers, and Ohkura looks a little put-out. "Not too top-secret, is it?"

Hina opens the door carefully, but not carefully enough; there's a sudden flash of blinding light and it feels like Ryo's been thrown backward - he can feel a knee in his side and can hear Yasu yelping in pain. He wants to shout back at him but his throat is sticking and he's blinded by that persistent light and he can't see anything; his heart is beating too fast and there's not enough air; he can't breathe, he can't _breathe_ \--

Then they're falling onto hard concrete, a mess of coughing limbs as they try to regain their senses. Ryo's head feels heavy as he gets to his knees, coughing more as his body reacts to the sudden change. "Shit," he hears Subaru mutter from somewhere near his left, and he looks up into the face of someone he'd never thought he would see again.

Ninomiya Kazunari.

His face hasn't changed from the last time they had met him, and that freaks Ryo out more than anything. He's got his steely look in his eye as he glowers down at them, impeccably dressed and standing straight, and Ryo can practically feel Yasu cower from wherever he is.

"Found you," Ninomiya says in his cold voice, the hint of a smirk on his face. Ryo has barely enough time to register what's happening when there are hands grabbing at him and he's forced to his feet and thrown against the back wall. He yelps as his elbow smashes against it but he ignores it as much as he can, quickly turning to face the person who is now laughing openly at him.

He doesn't know this guy but he sees Matsumoto attacking Yasu with some kind of lightning that whips around and slashes too close to Yasu's face for Ryo's liking; Yasu jumps back and holds his face with his hands, a pained expression on his face as Matsumoto's mouth curls into a smirk. Ryo knows as good as anyone that Yasu's not going to last long there.

A quick look around the room and it's kind of a disaster - Ohkura's been knocked to the floor with a hit to the face, blood trickling out of the corner of his mouth as he tries to get back to his feet; Subaru is spouting fireball after fireball at someone Ryo can't see. There's a crash from across the room and Ryo's partner pauses; it's Hina, who's thrown his now unconscious attacker into the floor.

" _That's_ how you do it," he spits, and steps nimbly over the small crater he's made in the floor. "Who's next?"

While Ryo's partner is distracted, he quickly pools his energy and makes himself invisible again - it's worth it just for the look on the other guys' face. Ryo kicks him once, twice, before punching him in the face hard and watching him go down. "Nice one, Ryo!" he hears from Ohkura and he turns to help him but Hina's there, Hina's got it under control. And you don't disturb Hina once he's fighting.

So Ryo takes a breath and runs for Matsumoto. He knows Sakurai is meant to be around someplace and he has no idea where Ninomiya has disappeared off to but he doesn't worry about that right now, choosing instead to focus on the way Matsumoto is teasing Yasu with his lightning whips. Ryo's got no clue as to how to take Matsumoto down, especially with those, which seem to be singing the ends of Yasu's hair as he playfully brings them close enough. Yasu's just cowering in the corner.

Yasu is an idiot who doesn't cope well under pressure.

"Mouse!" Ryo roars from behind Matsumoto, who is shocked enough to pause in his teasing. As he turns to see who's yelling, Yasu quickly transforms into a mouse and scampers away, ducking through Matsumoto's legs and accidentally running straight into Ryo's foot. Ryo rolls his eyes but pockets Yasu - these chest pockets come in handy sometimes. Ryo extends his power to make Yasu invisible, too; it drains his energy a ridiculous amount but that's okay, he thinks, as Yasu curls into a ball. He's a very cute mouse.

Ryo turns in time just to see Matsumoto catch Hina's leg with his lightning and all he can do is stare as Hina is taken down, wincing as his head just misses the concrete. Ohkura is on him in seconds, shaking his shoulders because Hina's not just gone down, he's unconscious, and that's all they need. There's this instinct in Ryo that just says _save Ohkura_ , because Ohkura's really the only person who can help them now. So he does, quickly running and diving at him before Matsumoto can pull back his whip for another attack, but nothing ends up happening.

Sakurai appears and Matsumoto pauses; there's some kind of agreement that drifts between them as Sakurai stands atop the stairs, looking down at him. Matsumoto's whip disappears.

"He doesn't want them dead," Sakurai says, his voice strangely soft, and Matsumoto nods.

"I know, I know," he says. "I was just playing." Sakurai gives him another look but let's it go. "Stay down here if you wanna keep an eye on me, then," he laughs, his whip appearing again and letting it snake close to Sakurai, who steps back and gives Matsumoto a withering glare.

"Fine."

So Matsumoto flings his whip out to flick near Subaru, who is still breathing fire at his opponents - there are two. He's noticed Hina's state, Ryo knows, because he's backing up towards them slowly, casting them guarded glances every so often.

 _Go get Yoko and Maru,_ Ohkura's voice says softly. He's looking at Ryo, exhausted, like the very task of talking through his mind is exhausting. _Something's wrong,_ he adds, and knits his eyebrows together. _I think someone's trying to take over my mind._

 _Now you know how we feel,_ Ryo responds, but he's worried. If there's an attack on Ohkura in his mind, none of them can do anything to help. It's Ohkura's battle, and he looks like he's losing it. He casts a quick look to their right - Sakurai and Matsumoto are getting closer, Matsumoto's whip crackling in the air. _Where are they?_

 _In a room down that hallway,_ Ohkura answers, but his voice sounds fainter.

 _Hold on,_ Ryo says. _You can do it_. Ohkura chuckles at the rare display of comfort from Ryo, and nods slightly. _Subaru's coming, stay near him._

Ryo quickly leaves, just managing to skirt around Sakurai as he does. Sakurai catches his eye and Ryo freezes, but all Sakurai does is smirk and turn away. But he had been _looking right at him_. Ryo feels chills run down his spine but he continues on his way, trying not to listen to the noises from the fight behind him.

The corridor is wide, and there are so many doors on each side. _Second. Left._ Ohkura says faintly, so Ryo heads there. He wonders how Ohkura is faring in the fight.

The door is open.

Ninomiya is in the room, standing behind a desk with his coat thrown over it. There's another, small-faced man next to Ninomiya, who has this vacant look in his eyes as Ryo creeps in. It's kind of like an office, only not. Ninomiya is talking to the other man about Matsumoto, and Ryo thinks that he might have some kind of video link between here and the other room.

But then he turns and sees them. Yoko and Maru are bound to seats at the back of the room, looking worse for wear. Yoko is paler than Ryo has ever seen him, with black bags under his eyes and a nice purple bruise on his jaw; he's also wearing these strange aluminium gloves on his hands - Ryo realises later that they're to stop Yoko from trying anything with his powers. Maru's wings are tied together with thick chains and the rest of him isn't looking good either, especially that patch of blood on his shirt.

Ryo doesn't know what to do. He's not strong like Hina; he can't break through those chains. And he can't hypnotise the others like Ohkura can.

"We've got a visitor," the man next to Ninomiya says, and he stops in the middle of his speech.

"Oh?" Ninomiya asks. "Get him to reveal himself."

Suddenly, there's a presence in Ryo's mind, attacking the feeble barriers he quickly tries to set up. It feels different than Ohkura's does; it feels like it's poking and prodding and it's none too gentle or kind - and then Ryo feels drained, like the energy is just dropping from his body in waves. He can only look on as his body reappears - the man has stripped him of his power. Well, no, Ryo can still feel it there, but the other man is pressing on a spot in his mind that refuses to let his powers loose.

"Meet Ohno," Ninomiya says, walking around to the other side of the desk and gesturing to the other man, who doesn't move. "I believe you're Nishikido?"

"Maybe," Ryo snaps; Maru and Yoko stir and raise their heads to stare incredulously at him. "What do you want?"

"You," Ninomiya says, smiling toothily as there's a horrible banging sound from the other room, where Ryo assumes the fight is still going on. "I want all of you."

"You didn't want us twenty two years ago, why do you want us now?" Ryo asks sharply, his curiosity shining through. Anyone else would be better at this than him but hey, he's all they have right now. Ninomiya's eyes flash with something akin to anger.

"You're interesting to me now," he says simply with a small shrug. "You were all too young to be interesting back then," he adds, and Ryo glares. "But you've all grown since then. Grown into your powers. And that's just what we want."

"...Huh?" Ryo asks, as eloquent as ever.

"We want to know how you came to exist," Ninomiya continues, circling Ryo like a vulture. "We want to know how you came to acquire these powers, when the rest of the known superhero population have been born with them. What makes you special?" he asks, crossing his arms and watching Ryo closely. "These two wouldn't crack," he says, nodding his head toward Maru and Yoko. Maru's watching them, his eyes flicking between Ninomiya and Ryo, chewing on his bottom lip as he listens. Yoko's staring at his own feet.

"What do you mean?" Ryo asks, staring at Yoko. "What did you do to them?"

Ninomiya laughs. "Nothing, nothing. Ohno couldn't get past their guards. Well, most of them. That's why they're a little battered and bruised-- oh, that sounded like a body slamming into the ground," he adds calmly, after a strange thumping sounds from the other room. "Probably one of yours."

Ryo growls. "What do you think--"

"Is that a mouse?" Ohno suddenly asks, peering at Ryo from around Ninomiya and staring at Ryo's chest.

"Mouse?" Ryo follows Ohno's line of sight and sees Yasu peering out from inside his pocket - he'd completely forgotten about him. "Oh. Right. Are you scared?" Ryo asks, hoping for some kind of leverage. But Ohno shakes his head.

"No. I just thought it was strange for you to have a mouse in your pocket."

Yasu climbs out of Ryo's pocket and runs down to his hand, curling his tail to the side and pointing at Yoko and Maru. Ryo understands, and quickly sets him down on the floor as Ninomiya and Ohno watch on cautiously. It seems like Ohno's mind control only works on humans, not humans in animal bodies. Yasu doesn't scramble to Yoko and Maru's rescue, however, but runs right out of the room squeaking at the top of his voice. Ryo can only watch in confusion. That wasn't the plan. Not that there had been a plan, but still.

That pressure is in his head again and he groans, feeling Ohno's presence - he doesn't actually think he left. Ohno is once again prodding and pressing and Ryo's memory is flashing and it's painful but Ohno doesn't care. Ryo tries putting up a barrier but Ryo's always sucked at it and Ohno easily breaks it down, quickly retrieving the information he couldn't get out of the others. Ryo's trying as hard as he can to push him back but Ohno is ridiculously strong as he pulls on a select few memories, and he can't stop him at all.

And then Ohno starts attacking him.

Ryo falls to his knees as Ohno pulls out unwanted memories; as he finds Ryo's nightmares and brings them to the surface. They burst before his eyes and he thinks he's yelling but he's not too sure - flashes of Ryo as a child, being teased and taunted ("Break his arm - he can just heal it again anyway."); of his mother's crying face when she left him on the side of a river, alone with nothing but a packed lunch to survive on; of being thrown out of every single home he could find. Ryo's not strong enough for this. He can't do this. He can't _do this_.

Ohno's ripping through his memories one by one and breaking Ryo down enough so that he'll be too weak to stop them once he finishes. It hurts, and it's exhausting - Ryo's _still_ trying to push him out. But then there's a lovely, calm feeling that rushes through him like water over fire, and he breathes.

 _I'm here,_ Ohkura says, and Ryo sags in relief.

_It's about fucking time!_

But Ohno's retreating from Ryo's mind and he's not sure why until he gets the energy to lift his head and sees Ninomiya and Ohno leaving through a side door. Ninomiya turns to smirk at him. "Got what I needed," he says. "I'll say hello to this Aiba guy for you." And then he's gone.

"Ryo--"

Yasu's on him first, clutching onto his shoulders and shaking him lightly. "Are you alright? What happened? What did they do to you?"

"Leave him alone," Subaru snaps, his voice hoarse. "He's fine."

There's a loud noise as Hina tears into the thick chains holding Yoko and Maru, who still haven't said a word. Maru's wings fan out as soon as Hina breaks those chains, and they can all practically feel the relief in him as they're released. Yoko sags into Hina's body and Hina carefully pats his head, looking surprised. "You're welcome," he says. "Oh, hang on." Hina removes the gloves on Yoko's hands, confused, but then there are shadows dancing up Hina's arms, coming up to float about his face. "Yeah, it's alright," he says awkwardly, and Yoko sighs.

Maru falls forward and shuffles over to where Ryo is still on the floor, quickly falling against his chest and wrapping tired arms around him. "Hey," Ryo says, surprised. "It's okay. You're okay." Ryo hugs him back, resting his head on the top of Maru's and looking at Yasu, who is stroking one of Maru's wings.

"Where're the others?" Ryo asks. "Matsumoto and that Sakurai?"

"Gone with Ninomiya," Subaru answers, helping Yoko up out of his chair. "Left as soon as they did."

"Yasu helped us," Hina adds, beaming at Yasu. "Turned himself into a goddamn lion even," he says, and Ryo's eyebrows rise.

"I didn't know you could do that!"

"I didn't know either!" Yasu laughs, and Ryo feels Maru smile against his neck. "But I needed to distract them, so... I thought it'd work."

"They didn't hurt you guys too badly, did they?" Yoko asks this time, and Ohkura shakes his head.

"Nothing time won't fix," he winks.

"And me," Ryo adds. Maru squeezes him slightly. Ohkura laughs, eyes twinkling. "They were really just toying with you?"

"They just needed the information," Subaru says, sitting on the ground next to them. "Needed a weaker mind." Ryo growls a little, but Subaru just laughs. "You know what I mean."

"He said something about wanting to know how we got our powers," Ryo says. "I don't get it--"

"I think he's trying to build his own army, of sorts," Ohkura comments, scratching his neck as he thinks. There's a great big bruise on his jaw that Ryo didn't see before. "I think he wants to make his own superheroes."

"Why?" Ryo asks.

"Power," Subaru shrugs. "That seems to be the only thing he ever wants."

"True."

They sit there for a while, on the cold concrete floor, Maru's arms around Ryo's waist and Yasu's hands on Maru's wing. Ryo's head hurts, and he's exhausted; he can't even begin to imagine how the others are feeling. Especially Hina, who seems to have been punched black and blue.

"You know," Maru says slowly, raising his head off Ryo's chest. "We really ought to go save Aiba."

"Not until you've slept for about a week," Ryo snaps. "You look half-dead."

"Okay," Maru sighs, and sags back onto Ryo. "But then we should definitely go save Aiba."

Ryo thinks of Yasu's eager smile and Maru's soft eyes; of the seven of them banding together once more. Black, yellow, orange, red, blue, green and purple. Of being Kanjani8 one more time. He even thinks of Aiba, with his stupidly wide grin and happy glint in his eyes, and sighs.

"Yeah, okay. _Then_ we can go save Aiba."

 

-the end-  



End file.
